Shares of Palantir slid -3.5% to $133.04 Monday morning, extending a brutal -8.9% drop from the May 4 close of $146.03, as a fresh wave of UK parliamentary backlash collided with a stock already under pressure despite record earnings.
UK Lawmakers Move to Kill a £330 Million Contract
The UK government is actively considering ending Palantir's involvement in the NHS data platform, with a junior health minister confirming the £330 million contract could be terminated short of its planned seven years through a break clause next spring.
In an April 16 Westminster debate, all 13 MPs who spoke demanded action.
Most alarming: reports that patient data opt-outs may not apply to the platform due to an unpublished legal directive. This isn't theoretical risk — it's a contract with an expiration date now circled on a government calendar.
The UK Is Palantir's Second-Biggest Market — and It's Souring
The UK accounts for roughly 11% of Palantir's global revenue — about $305 million in 2024 — making it the company's second-largest market after the U.S.
MPs say the NHS contract has delivered only three or four of 13 promised capabilities, and just a quarter of participating organizations report benefits.
Over 47,000 patients have formally complained to local trust boards. If the NHS contract unravels, the reputational contagion could spread to other UK government deals spanning at least 34 contracts worth over £670 million across police, defense, and other agencies.
Blowout Q1 Numbers Are Cushioning — But Not Immunizing — the Stock
Palantir just posted 85% revenue growth to $1.63 billion in Q1, crushing estimates, and raised full-year guidance to $7.65 billion.
Yet the stock still trades at a price-to-sales ratio above 60 — a level no industry leader has sustained historically. At that altitude, any headline risk becomes magnified. The NHS controversy doesn't threaten the core U.S. growth engine, but it tests whether Palantir can expand internationally without dragging political baggage through every government hallway.
Palantir Says "Trust Us" — Parliament Says "Prove It"
Palantir's UK executive vice-chair insisted the company has "no interest in patient data" and that data handling isn't its business model.
But the chair of Parliament's science committee rejected that framing, calling concerns about transparency, vendor lock-in, and data security "legitimate and substantive." The gap between Palantir's PR message and parliamentary reality is widening — and for a $330 billion company priced for perfection, credibility gaps can be expensive.